Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Tánaiste for her reply. I would like her to come to the region and meet enterprises. Over the years we have had particular obstacles in trying to attract foreign direct investment to Cavan-Monaghan and the Border region because of the troubles we endured as a community over many decades. Thankfully, during that period people with great entrepreneurial spirit developed businesses and enterprises. Thankfully, some of those in my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan have become international corporations. There was a great spirit of initiative and of getting up and doing things. Those companies are predominantly in the agrifood, construction and engineering sectors, as I said earlier. They export to Britain, which is their major market so the fluctuation in the value of sterling is an issue. Similarly, Britain is often a landbridge for product leaving our area and heading to destinations in other parts of Europe or outside Europe because the ports in Northern Ireland are heavily used by companies from south of the Border. There are particular difficulties there with regard to access to other markets. If the Tánaiste could come to the region and meet with those small, medium and large enterprises, she would get a feel for the concerns they have. I am not suggesting she does not have that knowledge but I think it would be beneficial. Some weeks ago, I brought a delegation of senior French parliamentarians to the Cavan-Monaghan area. They met businesses and on leaving Ireland they told me they went away with a totally new perspective on Brexit and how it affects our island. They said they would bring that message back to their parliament and Government. It is important that at senior Government level, people like the Tánaiste are in a position to come and meet those enterprises and local communities.

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